Apple iPhone 5S battery drain issues force replacement of some units

Apple’s iPhone 5s has been selling strongly, but some early models have a battery-drain problem.

From the Guardian: Company says issue affects ‘very limited’ number of its phones, and promises to swap affected handsets for new models

Apple is replacing a limited number of iPhone 5S smartphones after their owners reported that their batteries were draining far more quickly than expected.

The handset went on sale on 20 September with improved battery life – up to 10 hours talk time and 250 hours on standby – one of its selling points. Some early buyers clearly got far less than they were bargaining for.

“We recently discovered a manufacturing issue affecting a very limited number of iPhone 5S devices that could cause the battery to take longer to charge or result in reduced battery life,” Apple spokesperson Teresa Brewer told the New York Times. ”We are reaching out to customers with affected phones and will provide them with a replacement phone.”

“We are aware of this issue, which has affected a limited number of customers,” said Samsung at the time in a statement. “We ask all affected customers to please visit their nearest Samsung Electronics service centre, where they can receive a replacement battery for free of charge.”

The coming weeks will show just how limited Apple’s iPhone 5S problem is. The handset has been selling strongly, with Counterpoint Research telling the Guardian that it was the best-selling smartphone in the US in September, despite only being available for the last 10 days of the month.